Woman given indefinite hospital order after pleading guilty to manslaughter
Friday, September 12, 2025
The woman pictured is Zoe Crowther. On 3rd January this year she was unlawfully killed by a woman who claimed to be her friend.
That woman - Janet Connor – was today given an indefinite hospital order at Preston Crown Court after earlier pleading guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.
Before we go into detail about what Connor did, we thought we would tell you a bit more about Zoe and impact her killing had on her family.
In a statement to the court, Zoe’s son Glen wrote: “When I found out about mum, it was like a daydream, it wasn’t real. I initially tried to carry on as normal, however soon realised that nothing would be normal again. I have worked as a bricklayer all my life since I was 18, I had a job that provided financially for my family. I returned to work thinking I would be fine, however that was not the case. I had lost myself not knowing how to cope with daily life and had to stop working. I have lost weight with the constant worry and overthinking on how I can no longer provide for my family the emotional and financial support I always had.
“I try not to think what happened to mum, however my mind wanders back to the same thoughts, it is relentless, so sleeping is the way I deal with blocking these thoughts and images out.”
Zoe’s daughter Gabby wrote: “My whole life changed in January 2025 being told my mum had been taken away from us by Janet Connor in the most traumatic way.
“Since this day I feel like a stranger in my own body, nothing feels the same, something is missing and now always will. Not only did Janet Connor take away my mum’s life, she took a piece of me too. How can someone I have never met before make me feel this way and change my life forever?
“I can no longer sleep properly. I find myself in long gazes just lost in grief and sadness disconnected to daily life whilst the world passes by. I keep seeing my mum’s face and hear her voice. I feel guilty that I could have done more to help her.
“The things I love in life just don’t seem as important, my outlook now distorted, overshadowed by a dark cloud of grief.”
Zoe’s daughter Summer wrote: “I have no words that can describe how I feel. Mum was not a perfect person by any means, however her being taken away from us in the manner she has, has broken my heart.
“I have been robbed of the chance to ever have a future and meaningful relationship with her. She was taken away from us in the most brutal manner, and I have had nightmares about how scared she would have been and how alone she must have felt in those moments.
“The day we were told mum had had her life taken away, I didn’t realise what emotions were coming to hit me full force. I am still in shock; the nightmares persist seeing my family broken, I relive the moments of being told mum’s life had been taken. I cannot sleep without the aid of sleeping medication.”
To add context, we were called to a ground floor flat in Walmsley Close, Church, at 12:25pm on 14th January following a concern for welfare call relating to a smell coming from the property.
The officer in attendance knocked on the door a number of times but when she failed to get an answer climbed through the open kitchen window.
Once inside the property she saw Connor and when she walked into the living room found Zoe’s body.
Connor then made an immediate and unprompted admission, stating: “I need to tell you summat…I've done something bad…I've killed her”.
During the 15 minutes which followed, Connor said that Zoe's body had been in the flat for a week, and she was glad that the police were there.
Connor made further admissions during her police interview.
A Home Office postmortem examination found Zoe had died as a result of a stab wound to the neck. However, the pathologist had found multiple stab wounds to the head and neck.
Enquiries found that Connor had committed the offence 11 days earlier on 3rd January and that she had continued to live in the flat while Zoe lay in situ.
Zoe had been in contact with the police earlier in the day and an officer attended the property. We have referred ourselves to the IOPC (Independent Office for Police Conduct) in relation to that contact and their investigation is ongoing.
Zoe also called a friend on two separate occasions. On the first occasion Zoe said Connor was hitting her and that they were arguing about a television.
Zoe called the same woman again 11 minutes later at 11.17pm and she said she could hear a scuffle and Zoe asking for help.
Following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service, Connor, 54, of Walmsley Close, Church, was charged with Zoe’s murder.
However, she later pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.
She was sentenced to an indefinite hospital order.
DCI Andy Fallows, from our Force Major Investigation Team, said: “Today marks the end of our investigation into what was the horrific killing of a mother-of-three. My thoughts are with Zoe’s family, particularly her children, who have understandably been profoundly impacted by untimely and brutal ending of their mother’s life.”
